“I’m happy you’re my plus one.”
“Me, too, darlin’,” he replied, his grin lazy as he bent to brush his lips softly against mine.
“You two are so damn cute!”
I turned my head to see Amy May smiling broadly at us as she and Jason two-stepped past us.
“This isn’t a country song,” I called out, but Amy May just shrugged and kept on two-stepping.
Over the next hour, I danced with Jason, Bea, Cade, Elin, and Elena, and drank my fair share of margaritas. I was standing off to the side, sipping said margarita with Carmen and chatting somewhat drunkenly about nothing and everything, when Amy May sidled up with a handful of fresh margaritas.
“Drink up, ladies,” Amy May said, her words just a tiny bit slurred.
“Thanks,” Carmen said, downing the drink in her hand, before taking the new one.
“Hey,” Amy May said too loudly, her head swiveling as she looked around. “Where’s Bran?”
“I didn’t ask him,” Carmen replied with a shake of her head. “I couldn’t ask him to a wedding. It’s too soon.”
“Have you talked to him at all since Carlton’s?” I asked, remembering how cute they’d looked together.
“We’ve talked on the phone,” Carmen admitted, her cheeks reddening, then she said shyly, “He asked me out.”
“He did?” Amy May asked at the same time I yelled, “Yes!”
Carmen giggled and took a long, healthy sip of her drink.
“We’re going to dinner on Friday night.”
“Yay, I’m so happy for you,” Amy May cried as she leaned in to give Carmen a half hug.
“What am I missing?” Bea asked, coming up to stand beside us. Her pink bow tie was undone and hanging around her neck, and she was holding a glass of champagne.
“Bran asked Carmen out; they’re going to dinner,” I answered, doing a little jig throughout my friends.
“Nice,” Bea told Carmen. “You deserve a real, adult man, who’ll know how to treat you right.”
“Thanks,” Carmen replied, then leaned out to kiss Bea on the cheek. “And, congratulations. It’s been a beautiful reception.”
“It’s not over yet,” Amy May put in, then held up her hands and yelled, “Time for cake!”
“Time to ease up on the margaritas,” I countered with a laugh as I took another sip of delicious green liquid.
“Come help me.”
Amy May grabbed me by the elbow and pulled me through the throng of people and into the kitchen, where the staff was cleaning up the dishes from the buffet we’d eaten earlier. Amy May pushed a rolling cart with a white table cloth draped over it in front of a large refrigerator, then opened the door and pulled out the most beautiful cake I’d ever seen.
The bottom layer was covered in pink roses, the middle layer looked like it was wrapped in ribbon, and the top layer was decorated in delicate pink pearls. The pretty, pink creation was topped with a wire heart that had Bea & Shannon written in script in the middle.
It was gorgeous, and, since I knew the inside was half tiramisu and half java, it was going to taste amazing too.
“Oh, Amy May, you’ve really outdone yourself with this one,” I praised.
“You really think so?” Amy May asked, looking lovingly at her masterpiece.
“I really do,” I replied, leaning my head on Amy May’s shoulder as we looked at the cake together. “Bea and Shannon are going to adore it.”
And from the looks on their faces when we wheeled the cake out, I was right.